Arrangement for pre-selecting the sequence of firing of a double-barrelled gun having a single trigger

ABSTRACT

An arrangement for pre-selecting the firing sequence of a double-barrelled gun, in which a pivoted selector arm resiliently connected to a single trigger is displaceable parallel to its pivot axis between two positions in which it is positively located for cooperation with one or the other of two hammer release catches for discharging a selected one of the barrels first upon pulling the trigger when both hammers are cocked, according to the position in which the said pivoted arm is located.

United States Patent S0ana 1 Jan. 22, 1974 [5411 ARRANGEMENT R PR ELECTIN 2,203,373 6/1940 Browning 42/42 R 2,361,510 10/1944 Stout 42/42 R THE SEQUENCE OF FIRING OF A DOUBLE-BARRELLED GUN HAVING A SINGLE TRIGGER [75] Inventor: Renzo Soana, Brescia, Italy [73] Assignee: S.p.A. Luigi Franchi, Brescia, Italy [2211 Filed; July 28, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 275,992

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Aug. 13, 1971 Italy 69721 A/71 [52] US. Cl 42/42 R [51 Int. Cl. F4lc 19/00 [58] Field of Search 42/42 R [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,890,005 12/1932 Stiennon 42/42 R Primary Examiner-Samuel Feinberg Assistant Examiner-C. T. Jordan Attorney, Agent, or Firm sughrue. Rothwell. Mion. Zinn Macpeak [57] ABSTRACT An arrangement for pre-selecting the firing sequence of a double-barrelled gun, in which a pivoted selector arm resiliently connected to a single trigger is displaceable parallel to its pivot axis between two positions in which it is positively located for cooperation with one or the other of two hammer release catches for discharging a selected one of the barrels first upon pulling the trigger when both hammers are cocked, according to the position in which the said pivoted arm is located.

1 Claim, 3 Drawing Figures PAHNIHJJAH F P W4 FIG. 1

saw 1 or 2 ARRANGEMENT FOR PRE-SELECTING THE SEQUENCEllOF FIRING OF A DOUBLE-BARRELLED GUN HAVING A SINGLE TRIGGER The present invention relates to an arrangement for pre-selecting the sequence of firing of a doublebarrelled; gun especially a shot gun, provided with a s ng e er BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In known double-barrelled shot guns with a single trigger, it is necessary to select which barrel is to be discha ed upon thefirst operation of the trigger, when both barrels are loaded.

Various devices are known for the purpose of preselecti ng the firing sequence. Essentially such devices consist of a pivoted selector arm associated with the trigger and furnished with a projection which engages the end of oneof the hammer release catches for selecting which of the two hammers is to be released. This pivoted arm is, by means of a suitable selector lever mounted so as to be operable from outside the stock; placed in a first or a second position according to, which of the two barrels is to be pre-selected for the first firing. The projection of the selector arm engages the release catch of the respective selected hammer so as to release the hammer associated with the barrel preselected by the positioning of the arm. Discharge of the selected barrel occurs upon pulling the trigger, which lifts the said selector arm.

After firing the selector arm returns to a position in which its projection engages beneath the end of the other hammer releasecatch, preparing the latter for firing the other barrel.

known selector arrangements the selector arm is tied at two points, that is, at a point corresponding with the trigger and at a point corresponding with its oscillating end, since the selector arm must, in addition to operating one of the hammer release catches, be free to complete one oscillation in reaction to the recoil, for the purpose of engaging its projection beneath the end of the other release catch. The selector arm has to perfornra rocking motion at each selected position and in addition must be capable of oscillation in a plane parallel to the pivotal axis of the release catches and of displacement in a direction transverse to the longitudinal axes of U16 catches for selection of the first barrel to be discharged. In known types of pre-selection devices the construction of the selector arm was disadvantageous inasmuch as, for the purpose of allowing the aboverr entioned movements, the pivot axes of the arm were not precise and allowed undesirable rotation of the arm ahotttits own longitudinal axis. The selector arm was consequently prone to unsatisfactory operation with the result that sometimes the pre-selected barrel failed to discharge, or both barrels were discharged simultan qusly An object of the present invention is to provide a preselector arrangement provided with a selector arm so mounted as to avoid any malfunctioning and so as to err-able preselection with certainity of the barrel to be fire first SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Aceording to the invention there is provided an arrangernent for pre-selecting the firing sequence of the barrels, comprising a pivoted arm resiliently connected to the trigger, a pivot pin allowing oscillation of said arm in a plane parallel to the plane of rocking movement of said trigger, means supporting said arm for movement in a direction parallel to the axis of said pivot pin, and means locating said arm selectively in a first and in a second position, said positions being spaced apart along the axis of the pivot pin, to predetermine the barrel to be discharged upon first pull of the trigger.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention will now be described, merely by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of part of the firing mechanism of a double-barrelled shot gun with a single trigger, including an arrangement for pre-selection of the firing sequence according to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the trigger of the mechanism shown in FIG. 1, showing the actuation means of the selector arm of the pre-selection arrangement, and

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken on line IIl--III of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENT With reference to the drawings, reference numeral 1 indicates generally the stock of a shot gun having two barrels superimposed or arranged side by side. The gun has the usual lever 2 for opening or breaking the gun to afford access to the breech ends of the two barrels, which are not shown, but which are located to the left of FIG. 1. The two barrels of the gun are provided with respective firing hammers 3 and 4, rotatable about a common pivot axis. v

In FIG. 1 the hammer 4 is shown in the cocked position and the hammer 3 in the rest position in which it is disposed after a shot has been fired.

In a manner known per se, the hammers 3 and 4 are cocked against opposing forces provided by springs by cocking members (not shown in the drawings) and held in the cocked position by respective teeth 3a and 4a which engage respective projections 5a and 6a on respective hammer release catches 5 and 6 which are pivotable about a common axis.

The ends of the release catches 5 and 6 opposite the ends at which the projections 5a and 6a are provided are formed with respective detents 5b, 6b adapted to engage with a projection 7 on a selector arm 8. The projection 7 as a central protruding rib 7a bounded on opposite sides by shoulder 7b.

The selector arm 8 is constituted by a stem part 8a terminating in an enlarged head 8b. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 the stem 8a is supported at its end remote from the head 8b on a pivot pin 9 which is preferably integral with the arm 8. The pivot pin 9 is pivotally mounted on the body 10 of a trigger and is supported and guided on one side in a bore 11 in the body 10 of the trigger itself and on the other side it is supported and guided in a bore 12 in plate 13 which is fixed to the body 10 of the trigger by means of screws or studs 15 which engage in respective holes 14 in the plate 13. In this manner, as is apparent from FIGS. 2 and 3, the arm 8 is resiliently connected to the trigger and is free to oscillate in a plane perpendicular to the axis of the pivot pin 9.

The pivot pin 9 and the arm 8, may be displaced in a direction parallel to the axis of the pivot pin 9 so as to occupy two laterally stable positions symmetrically disposed on opposite sides of the centre line of the body 10 of the trigger, by a locating mechanism. This locating mechanism comprises an annular flange 16 forming part of the arm 8 and surrounding the pivot pin 9. The flange 16 has a double bevelled portion 17 with which one flank or the other of a conical tip 18 on a movable rod 19 cooperates. The rod 19 is urged by a spring 20 towards the flange 16, the spring 20 being housed within a cylindrical cavity 21 in the trigger body 10, which cavity is closed by a plate 13.

With particular reference to FIG. 1, the trigger body 10 is pivoted to the frame of the stock 1 by means of a pivot pin 22. The trigger body 10 is provided with an operating portion 10a and with rear appendage 1012, the latter cooperating with a safety mechanism (not shown). The rear appendage 10b forms a stop against which one end 23 of a leaf spring 24 bears. The other end 25 of the spring is secured to the head 8b of the arm 8. The end 23 of spring 24 may slide freely over a flat surface on the appendage 10b. The function of the spring 24 is solely to return the arm 8, after a shot has been fired, to a position engaging the detents b and 6b of the catches 5 and 6, after recoil of the head 8b of the arm 8 itself.

OPERATION The manner of operation of the firing sequence preselector arrangement follows:

Assuming that both the hammers 3 and 4 are initially cocked, selection of the barrel firing sequence is effected by moving parallel to its axis the pivot pin 9 which is rotatable in the bores 11 and 12 respectively of the trigger body and of the plate 13.

The pivot pin 9 has two stable positions with corresponding stable positions of the arm 8, rigidly attached to the pivot pin, these stable positions being ensured by the flanks of the conical tip 18 of the rod 19 engaging one or the other bevelled faces of the double-bevelled portion 17. Assuming that the pivot pin 9 has been moved to the position shown in FIG. 2 and that both hammers 3 and 4 are cocked, or that at least the hammer 4 is cocked, as shown in FIG. 1, then the protruding rib 7a of the projection 7 engages the detent 6b of the release catch 6 of the hammer 4, while the detent 5b of the release catch 5 of the hammer 3 will be disposed opposite one of the shoulders 7b of the projection 7. The hammer 4 has been selected, in the sense that upon first pulling the trigger the first hammer 4 will be released. Thus by pulling on the operating portion 10a of the trigger, the arm 8 is raised with the consequence that the protruding rib 7a of its projection 7 lifts the adjacent end of the release catch 6, releasing the associated hammer 4 and causing discharge of the respective barrel. The release catch 5 is not engaged by the shoulder 7b, so that the other hammer 3 remains cocked, or in whatever position it was initially disposed.

When the selected barrel is discharged, the recoil action on the relatively massive head 8b and the action of the leaf spring 24, causes the selector arm 8 to rock (clockwise as shown in FIG. 1) about its pivot pin 9 and return under the influence of the leaf spring 24, with its projection 7 in correspondence with the detents 5b and 6b of the release catches 5 and 6. Since the lever 6 has now already been released from engagement with the hammer 4 and the arm 8 can advance further because the protruding rib 7a of the projection 7 is not obstructed.

The arm 8 therefore advances until the respective shoulder 7b engages the detent 5b of the other release catch 5, ready for release by a successive actuation of the trigger, assuming, of course, that the other hammer 3 is also cocked initially.

If it is desired to reverse the sequence of firing of the barrels'it is simply necessary to move the pivot pin 9 parallel to its axis, carrying with it the arm 8, into the position shown in FIG. 3. In this position the tip 18 of the rod 19 engages the other bevelled face of the portion 17 and the rib 7a then cooperates with the other release catch 5, assuming, of course, that the corresponding hammer 3 is cocked, contrary to the position illustrated in FIG. 1.

It will be appreciated from the above description, that the arrangement for pre-selection of the firing sequence according to this invention is especially simple and compact and does not exhibit excessive play between its component parts, the arm 8 being anchored only at one end, in precisely determined positions relative to the trigger, by single locating means in the form of the rod 19.

It will also be appreciated that, with this single locating means, both the rocking movement of the selector arm 8 to regain the position necessary for a successive firing, and the translational movement parallel to its pivot axis to effect selection of the firing order, are effected with precision, so that the operation is secure and unequivocal.

This invention is naturally subject to many variations of a constructional character which are, nevertheless, all encompassed within the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a double-barrelled gun of the kind having two firing hammers, two release catches associated with the hammers, and a single trigger, an arrangement for preselecting the firing sequence of the barrels, comprising a pivoted arm resiliently connected to the trigger, a pivot pin allowing oscillation of said arm in a plane parallel to the plane of rocking movement of said trigger, means supporting said arm for movement in a direction parallel to the axis of said pivot pin, and means locating said arm selectively in a first and in a second position, said positions being spaced apart along the axis of the pivot pin, to predetermine the barrel to be discharged upon first pull of the trigger, said means locating the arm in said first and second positions for selection of the barrel firing sequence comprises a flange on said arm provided with a bevelled edge extending over an arc of a circle centered on the pivot pin axis, a cooperating rod having a conical tip, and a spring urging the tip of said rod towards said bevelled edge, said spring being housed in a recess in the body of the trigger, the lateral faces of the tip of said rod being held resiliently in engagement with the lateral faces of the bevelled edge. 

1. In a double-barrelled gun of the kind having two firing hammers, two release catches associated with the hammers, and a single trigger, an arrangement for pre-selecting the firing sequence of the barrels, comprising a pivoted arm resiliently connected to the trigger, a pivot pin allowing oscillation of said arm in a plane parallel to the plane of rocking movement of said trigger, means supporting said arm for movement in a direction parallel to the axis of said pivot pin, and means locating said arm selectively in a first and in a second position, said positions being spaced apart along the axis of the pivot pin, to predetermine the barrel to be discharged upon first pull of the trigger, said means locating the arm in said first and second positions for selection of the barrel firing sequence comprises a flange on said arm provided with a bevelled edge extending over an arc of a circle centered on the pivot pin axis, a cooperating rod having a conical tip, and a spring urging the tip of said rod towards said bevelled edge, said spring being housed in a recess in the body of the trigger, the lateral faces of the tip of said rod being held resiliently in engagement with the lateral faces of the bevelled edge. 